As both a woman in ministry, and a mom, I often feel like I live in tension.

I’m sure all working moms feel this tension. There’s a constant pull between pastor-me, and mom-me. I have moments where I feel like I’m not using my gifts to the fullest, like I’m not living up to my calling, like I’m not doing all that I could be doing. I look at others, and I feel that twinge of jealousy. How are they doing it? What choices have they made? What is different in their lives?

Are you a man who is discontent with just believing women should be treated fairly? Are you ready to do something? Here are ten practical ways to address sexism at work, church, or in every day contexts. Whether you are an egalitarian, a feminist, or simply want to be more inclusive and challenge the status […]

Until recently, if I were to be asked if I was a feminist, my reply would have been a noncommittal, “Not really.”

Of course, being a woman, I was never opposed to women’s rights, nor did I doubt my ability to be as capable as men in most situations. Claiming to be a Christian feminist however, still seemed extreme; as though one of the main requirements was to hate men, or at least regard them as the weaker sex.

Recent events, articles, videos, and social networking posts have both inspired and troubled me enough to reclaim the word feminism for what it is: providing help to women who are being stripped of their basic rights or humanity.

Today the average Christian looks like a poor Nigerian woman rather than a European well-educated male as in the past.

In 2050, 72 percent of the world’s Christians will live in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and a sizable share of the remainder will be immigrants from one or more of those continents. [1] Because of this, the Western church must be honest with the reality that Christianity is now a globalized religion, and its Euro-American roots have ceased to be the solely relevant voices.

Here is the fourth and final installment of “More than Footnotes” a series on influential women in church history.

With the influence of the First Great Awakening of American religion (1730s-1740s) as impetus, women in American Christianity were driven by the experience of conversion to transcend prescribed roles and self-understandings.

Part of a conversation overheard at Starbucks: “You’re a white American male with a college degree. The world is your oyster – don’t ever forget that!”

I’ve been thinking a lot about privilege lately.

Well, not just lately. I overheard that conversation at a Starbucks in Washington, D.C. more than a year ago, and it still haunts me. The Oxford Dictionary defines privilege as “a special right, advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group”. Simply put, privilege has to do with how groups in society accommodate and cater to you.

I think most people are well aware of racial and class privilege, but I don’t see the same level of awareness of male privilege, at least not in Christian circles.

Over the past few months I’ve had several conversations with male friends who disagree that they are “over-privileged” in their communities of faith, even though they may agree that women have often been at a disadvantage. I had been praying and mulling over how to break through this impasse when I came across an anonymous post, “A Definitive Guide to White Privilege”. There are a lot of these posts floating around, but this one had a lot of examples that I think are also true of male privilege. I took the liberty of rewriting the list from my vantage point as a woman in the church.

A recent article warned Christian women (and men, in parentheses) that “Feminism Is Not Your Friend” and addressed a twofold question: Do Christians need to identify as feminist, and should they, given feminists’ supposedly anti-Christian baggage? This is a question many Christians on both sides of the aisle are asking. (For those who don’t know, […]

“You are a creative, intelligent person with a very bright future ahead of you. Don’t feel bad about your decision. I’m proud of you and I know God is proud of you too.” Those are the exact words I spoke to a young woman a few weeks ago; and another a young woman a few […]

In the short time since its release, Sarah Bessey’s little yellow book with the provocative title, “Jesus Feminist,” (Howard) has started a lively discussion among evangelicals, some praising it as unique contribution in the gender debate, and others dismissing it as “nothing new under the sun.”

I never thought I’d write a blog about gender—or McDonald’s for that matter. I love McDonald’s, but not enough to write about it. I’m all for gender equality, but I’ve never really had any reason to add my voice to the conversation. Yet here I am, writing about them in the same piece. A few […]

Last week, I attended The Justice Conference that was held here in Los Angeles. I have to say up front that it was incredible. I truly appreciated The Justice Conference for presenting a great line up of speakers who, unlike those at many Christian conferences, didn’t all look exactly the same. The gender, race, and […]

In honor of International Women’s Day we’re highlighting a post published today by reader Melinda Cousins. “March 8th, today, is International Women’s Day. Lots of countries have some kind of celebration to mark the day, but still plenty of people question whether we should have a special day to celebrate women, or why there is no International Men’s Day.”

We are excited to have been mentioned in this blog on Monday, by The Millenial Pastor, about the Mainline view of Evangelicalism. He humorously sets up the debate about women in ministry as a high school drama. Continue reading to find out which part the author sees The Junia Project playing… These days, Evangelicalism makes me feel […]